


Metal Gear Liquid or How I Learned to Stop Angsting and Love My Evil Twin

by ShortForPhill



Category: Metal Gear
Genre: AU, AU - Everybody Lives, Hal is not your licensed therapist, POV Alternating, Route 66 - Freeform, The awkward road trip nobody asked for, The boys go Ocelot hunting, liquid lives, the boys go cross-country in a ford focus
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-08
Updated: 2017-05-29
Packaged: 2018-07-13 20:51:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 2,944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7136603
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShortForPhill/pseuds/ShortForPhill
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's the summer of 2007, and Solid Snake is fished out of the water following the tanker incident by none other than his twin brother, who is very much not dead.</p><p>What follows is an awkward team-up full of road tripping, daddy issues, and Rihanna's "Umbrella".</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Reunion

**Author's Note:**

> Will update the tags as I go.
> 
> un-beta'd. all mistakes (and poor quality) are mine.

David wakes up in a shitty apartment somewhere in New York City. The last thing he remembers is swimming through the wreckage of the tanker, Ocelot escaping with Metal Gear Ray, Otacon on the CODEC...  
"Otacon!" He sits up in a panic.  
"I'm here, Dave," Hal waves from the corner of the room, where he sits hunched over his laptop.  
"So, you finally woke up," a familiar voice greets him. But it can't be!  
"Liquid!"  
"Hello brother. Surprised to see me?"  
"But you died!"  
"Obviously not."  
"He's not here to kill us, Dave," Hal offers. "He helped me pull you out of the water."  
"Why?"  
"It's a long story," Liquid explains. "It turns out that Ocelot was playing us both the whole time."  
"He mentioned something called the Patriots."  
"Yes. That's who we've got to take down."  
"Why the change in heart? I thought you wanted to rebuild Outer Heaven."  
"I had some sense knocked into me. If we're really going to reject our father's legacy, then we need to work together."

There's definitely something different about Liquid, but David can't quite put his finger on it. Maybe it's the fact that Liquid's wearing a shirt - he hadn't worn one in Alaska. David's hands wander across the mattress, reaching for a gun that isn't there.  
"Looking for this?" Liquid asks. He holds up the tranquilizer gun, spinning it idly in his left hand. Hang on ...  
"What happened to your right arm?" Liquid raises his bandaged stump, the arm ending just below the elbow.  
"Just one more thing the Patriots took from me," he declares. "Who know what else they might've taken if I hadn't escaped." David resists the urge to roll his eyes. He's really not in the mood for a monologue right now.

Fortunately, Hal chooses that moment to speak up.  
"I'll get us a car. If we're careful, we can be out of the city by tomorrow."  
"A car?" Liquid scoffs. "They'll track is down in no time."  
"No they won't," Hal insists. "I'll make sure there's no trail to follow."  
"And how are you going to manage that?"  
"The kid designed you a Metal Gear. I'm sure he'll figure something out," David interjects.  
"Very well."

Liquid tosses the gun onto the mattress, lips curling into a sneer as David grabs it.  
"Go ahead, Snake," he says. "I can tell you want to."  
"No," David lies. Liquid raises his eyebrows, not at all convinced. David shrugs and sets the gun aside in a show of good faith.  
"So..."  
"So now what?"  
"We can put a more concrete plan together once we're out of the city. For now, Emmerich needs to acquire a car for us."   
"Liquid..."  
"We should probably stop using code names."  
"What do I call you, then?"  
"Eli. It is my name, after all." Liquid's distaste for the name is clear.  
"Eli..."  
"David." Liquid throws one last doubtful glance at Hal before he turns and exits the room.

"You should talk to him," Hal says without looking up from his laptop.  
"I'm not so sure that will help," David replies.  
"He's your brother, Dave. At least give him a chance. He can help us track down Ocelot."  
"Fine."

David walks out onto the balcony, standing in the opposite corner of his brother. He figures Hal is right; he does need to sort things out with Liquid.  
"Cigarette?" he offers lamely after lighting up his own. To his surprise, Liquid (Eli, he mentally corrects himself) takes him up on the offer.  
"Why not?" Eli shrugs. "Nothing else seems to work." He accepts the cigarette with his remaining hand, fingers still a bit clumsy.  
"I think Ocelot has your arm." Real smooth, Dave. That's a great way to start things off with your long-lost twin.  
"I'm not surprised," Eli scowls. "He's one of them, after all."  
"The Patriots?"  
"Yes."  
"We need to get out of this city before we can start worrying about that."  
"Hmm. You're probably right." Eli leans against the railing, blowing smoke into the night air. Death (or near-death) seems to have mellowed Liquid.  
"Do you still hate me?" David asks after a long silence.  
"Maybe. Not like before."  
"Why?"  
"Turns out you're not the dominant twin after all. I am."  
"That's not how genes work."  
"The Patriots seem to think it is."  
"Hmph."  
"Indeed."  
"I have ... questions."  
"Not tonight. You should rest. I'll keep watch."

David hesitates, then nods. He leans against the railing, finishing his cigarette. Maybe Liquid has changed. He's thinner, paler, hair not quite so sun bleached. He looks tired. David doesn't drink as much, so there's that. Oh, and his hair is longer. He thinks back to Ocelot's words to him on the tanker.  
"You haven't aged well," the old man had said. Whatever that was supposed to mean. There will be time enough for those questions, he supposes. He stubs out the cigarette, flicks the butt over the edge of the balcony, and heads back inside. It's a sign of trust, that he turns his back without automatically reaching for his weapon, one that Liquid better appreciate.

"I got us a car," Hal announces. "We can pick it up tomorrow morning."  
"Great. Now get some sleep."  
"What about Liquid?"  
"He's fine. Come on." Hal shuts his laptop and climbs onto the unoccupied side of the bed. He doesn't say anything as David snakes an arm around him and pulls him closer. They're both asleep in minutes.


	2. Focus

Eli does appreciate Snake's trust, however ill-deserved it may be. Snake (David) is a bit softer than he remembers. Maybe that scientist of his thawed him out a bit. Eli briefly wonders what happened to the girl - Meryl, he recalls - after Shadow Moses. He makes a mental note to ask Snake about her in the morning. His thoughts turn to Ocelot and the Patriots, and how much closer he is to revenge now that Snake is on his side. It's enough to keep him occupied until the sunrise peeks through the side streets.

Eli is not at all surprised that Snake wakes up with the sun.  
"We're going to get the car," Snake announces. A man of many words.  
"Are you sure that's wise?"  
"What do you mean?"  
"I'm sure the Patriots won't hesitate to blame last night's little escapade all on you." Snake pauses, reconsiders.  
"Hal will get the car," he amends. "I'll get the rest of our stuff from the safehouse."  
"Fine," Eli sighs. "I'm going to catch some sleep. If you don't come back I'll assume you're either dead or you changed your mind."

Eli's sleep is not restful. It hasn't been since Mantis died. He dreams about cold metal tables, of needles, and of too many hands poking and prodding. The same thing he always dreams about. Well he's not a lab rat in a cage anymore. The thought of revenge calms him down when he wakes sweating and shaking. He survived just fine before Mantis helped calm his mind, and he'll continue to be just fine. He is not weak.

The sound of a car rolling up in the alley draws him out of his brooding not a moment to soon. He throws the remaining food in the apartment into a bag and slips out the fire escape. He's not impressed with what he finds.

"What the fuck is this?" Eli demands.  
"It's a Ford Focus, dumbass. Get in," David retorts.  
"It's so ... ordinary."  
"It's low-profile."  
"It has great highway mileage," Hal offers. Eli grumbles, but he slides into the passenger seat anyway.  
"Let's just get out of here."

David drives and Eli navigates while Hal sleeps in the backseat. The silence isn't uncomfortable, but it isn't easy either. It's like the quiet that falls over an elevator full of acquaintances all headed to the top floor.

"Dave..." Eli tries out the name.  
"Eli," David responds, keeping his eyes on the road. It seems strange - such ordinary names for two men who are anything but.  
"You have questions."  
"Uh, yeah."  
"Now is as good a time any." Eli can almost see the wheels turning in David's head as his brother decides what to ask first.

"What happened to Master Miller?" David finally asks.  
"I wasn't there, if that's what you're asking. I had Ocelot take care of it for me."  
"Oh."  
"Who was he to you, really?"  
"We were close." Oh. "He helped me a lot after Outer Heaven, and through my mission in Zanzibar Land."  
"When you killed Big Boss."  
"Yes."  
"How did you do it?" Eli dares to ask.  
"Improvised flamethrower," David answers. It fits, Eli thinks, remembering a man on fire in the mountains of Afghanistan. 

David's grip on the steering wheel is tight as he takes the next exit off the highway.  
"Pit stop," he answers Eli's unasked question.  
"Want me to drive?" David shrugs. A man of many words.


	3. West

They pull off at some dingy gas station, and Eli goes inside to pay. They agreed ahead of time that he was the least likely to be recognized out of the three of them. David starts to clean the trash from the car, tossing out empty coffee cups, soda bottles, and cigarettes. He also wakes Hal up.  
"Where are we?" the scientists asks.  
"Somewhere in Pennsylvania. Grantville, I think?"  
"Ok."  
"We're just outside Hershey," Eli confirms, as he pops open the gas cap. Hal jumps a little, startled by the blond twin's quiet approach. David, of course, heard Eli approaching without any problem. There's a distinct heaviness to his steps when he's not thinking about it.  
"So where are we going?" Hal asks.  
"Chicago," David answers. He and Eli had already discussed it.  
"What's in Chicago?"  
"The start of the old Route 66."  
"Oh. We're going back west?"  
"We should be able to disappear easily in Los Angeles," Eli explains. "From there, we can go north to Canada or south into Mexico."  
"Route 66 as it was no longer exists, but we can follow the historic route to buy ourselves some time to go off grid," David adds.  
"That'll take at least two weeks," Hal offers. Dave glances at Eli. "It'll have to do," Eli shrugs.

As it turns out, two weeks is entirely too long to be trapped in a car with your evil twin. Another shitty gas station, another long day of driving, and David has already had to stop Eli twice from shooting the radio for playing Nickelback's "If Everyone Cared". Hal pretends to sleep as they pass through the middle states. David and Eli try in vain to find a station that isn't country, Christian Rock, or Top 40 before just turning the radio off.

"Did you know it was him?" Eli asks in a quiet moment.  
"Big Boss?"  
"Did you know he was our father?"  
"Not the first time."  
"And the second?"  
"That's when he told me. I didn't believe him."  
"Would it have made a difference?" David hesitates.  
"I don't know," he answers truthfully. It's a nice moment, until Eli ruins it by opening his mouth.  
"I tried to kill him once," Eli admits. "Twice," he amends. "Turns out it wasn't even him."  
"How disappointing."  
"It was. I was twelve."  
"You need serious help."  
"I'm not the one who set dear dad on fire."  
"I also shot him in the face. Or I guess that was his double."  
"You got to have all the fun."  
"Please consider seeing a therapist."


	4. Detour

Los Angeles is a disaster. Not having a GPS works when there’s only a single highway cutting through miles of unchanging corn fields and desert. Trying to read a (probably) outdated map in the middle of LA traffic is a terrible idea. Hal put his headphones on immediately to block out the arguing.  
"Just pull over at that burger joint," Eli sighs. David complies, grumbling under his breath.

The park in the tiny lot outside Miller's Maxi Buns and exit the car. After stretching their limbs, they grab the road map.  
"Alright where the hell are we?" David scowls.  
"I think we're here," Eli points to a spot on the map.  
"We might be here though," David points to another spot where the same two streets intersect.  
"We could really use a GPS," Hal pipes up.  
"We agreed back in Chicago that was a bad idea," Eli counters.  
"That was three wrong turns and two missed exits ago."  
"Let's just figure out where we are so we can get out of this city."

"Hey. Parking is for customers only," comes a gruff voice behind them. Both men turn around and find themselves face to face with what just might be the ghost of Master Miller.  
"Oh no," the man utters.  
"Oh fuck," Eli breathes.  
"What the fuck?" David growls.  
"Hello David," Miller has the decency to look a bit sheepish. "Surprise. I'm not dead."

"You know what? Fuck this. I'm out." David throws his hands up and just walks away.  
"Dave, wait," Hal calls after him, but Eli halts him with a hand on his shoulder.  
"He'll come back."  
"Are you sure?"  
"He won't leave without you."

Miller is unfazed.  
"You took my sunglasses," he says to Eli, as calmly as if he were discussing the weather. "Those were the original frames."  
"You can't be serious," Eli snorts. "There's no way those frames lasted ... What? Twenty years?"  
"You're still a little shit."  
"And you're still a bitter old man."

Miller turns his attention to Otacon.  
“You must be Emmerich.”  
“You know me?” Hal stammers.  
“I knew your father.”  
“Oh.”  
“I could say something witty about apples and trees, but I'm sure everyone here has had enough of those comparisons to last at least two lifetimes.”  
“Even you?” Eli asks.  
“Even me,” Miller concedes.

"How did you survive?" Eli demands.  
"Spite, mostly," Miller shrugs. "Same as you, I'd imagine."  
"Hmmm."  
"We shouldn't loiter here too long. One of you ride with me, the other can follow. We'll collect David on the way to my home."  
"Is it secure?" Hal asks.  
"Nowhere is secure. But it'll do."


	5. Catherine

David sulks the entire way to Miller's house. It took a persistent Hal a full twenty minutes to coax him into the car in the first place. Eli rides ahead with Miller. Now that has got to be an interesting conversation. Hal drives, humming along to the radio. It's the latest from Enrique Iglesias, an exuberant dj informs them (in Spanish) as the song finishes.

Miller's house in the California suburb is surprisingly quaint. White picket fence and everything. It's so vastly different from the impenetrable fortress David imagined that, for a few minutes, he forgets to be annoyed. A woman opens the door, scowling at everyone in a perfect mirror of Miller's perpetually grumpy expression.  
"Pull any shit with Catherine and she'll make you eat your own intestines," Miller says, sounding a little bit too cheerful about that. Eli grunts in response. David can't stop staring at the old FOXHOUND t-shirt she's wearing. At least until Miller swats him upside the head.  
"Go unpack your car. Your nerd can't carry it all himself."

"He seems alright," Hal says as he hands a box of equipment to David. "He says he knew my dad."  
"Is that a good thing?"  
"I'm not sure." David isn't so sure about Hal's ability to judge a person's character, but then he hasn't had the best track record himself.

All four men must pass through the gauntlet. Catherine guards the door with a scowl and some serious muscles. Hal goes first. Her expression softens as she directs him to the guest room to drop off his bags. Eli goes next. Catherine stops him with a hand to his chest and a glare.  
"It wasn't personal," he says quietly. She lets him go with a muttered warning. Miller goes third.  
"You need to call Nadine," Catherine says. Miller nods. Finally, David crosses the threshold.  
"You must be David," Catherine remarks. "I've heard a lot about you."  
"Oh." David doesn't really know what to say to that. Catherine seems unimpressed. She lets him pass anyway.

As David helps Hal unpack, he can hear Miller and Catherine on the phone in the next room talking to a woman (who must be Nadine).  
"That might be the dumbest thing you've done since marrying me," Nadine says.  
"Hey it wasn't all bad. We totally nailed that co-parenting thing," Miller protests.  
"Jury's still out," Catherine says.  
"Rude. Anyway, you should be totally fine, seeing as three of the five of us here are supposed to be dead. Just remember what I told you."  
"Never trust a cowboy?"  
"I meant about Cipher, but sure. That too." Nadine responds with an exasperated sigh and swearing in what might be Chinese.  
"I think I preferred you when you were alive," she says.  
"I doubt it. You've seen pictures of me in the 70s."  
"Not what I meant. I'll see you on Thursday for your regularly scheduled gripe session, Mac."

Miller runs into David in the hallway as they both head for the kitchen.  
"Isn't Nadine your ex-wife?" David asks.  
"She's also my therapist. One of the best psychiatrists in the state."  
"And she knows about all this?"  
"I don't keep any secrets from Nadine or Catherine, just like I didn't keep any secrets from Catherine's mother."  
"I can't believe they don't think you're crazy."  
"I can't believe you got two people to marry you," Eli says from the living room.  
"Date enough people and eventually someone says yes," Miller replies.  
"If they're not consumed by revenge," Catherine adds from the kitchen.  
"Fair enough," Miller concedes. "Speaking of which, call your girlfriend. We'll get to work as soon as we finish dinner."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song on the radio is the Enrique Iglesias song "Dimelo".
> 
> Catherine's mother is named Beatriz, she and Kaz met and married in the 80s, while Big Boss was in his (1st) coma.  
> Kaz met and married Nadine in the 90s, after Beatriz passed away.  
> Both women have punched Kaz in the face at least twice.
> 
> Ocelot did in fact check in on Kaz during the early 90s, hence Kaz's warning to Nadine about cowboys.


End file.
